5 Tips to Help Your Child Stop Stuttering

Some
children stutter when they are young and grow out of it with speech therapy in
school. Others grow out of the stutter with time and age while others may still
have stuttering no matter what assistance they are provided in and outside of
school. There are many ways to help your child, in addition to enrolling them
in courses on how to stop stuttering issues. This article will highlight some
of the things that you can do to help your child stop stuttering.

Consider
how bad the stuttering is. Is it mild or hardly noticeable? Is the stuttering
more severe and includes more than 10% of your child’s speech? Regardless of
how you answered these questions, it still may be in your child’s best interest
to hire a speech pathologist to work with them whether it be at school or in
your home. A speech pathologist will be able to practice with your child and
help your child with their stuttering.

Talk
slowly with your child and pause. Set aside time for your child each night to
talk together one on one. Talk to your child slowly and pause frequently. Allow
your child to respond and encourage them to pause and think through their
words. Sometimes a child may stutter because their mind is working so fast that
they can’t get the words out fast enough. This is normal among children 3-5
years of age when they are first learning to communicate. When speaking with
your child, refrain from interrupting them or asking them to start over as this
can be discouraging and upset your child. It can also make your child feel self
conscious and not want to speak out much.

Reassure
your child. If your child gets upset or becomes frustrated when speaking
because of the stuttering, reassure your child and let them know that it is
okay to get stuck on words when speaking and that people get stuck all the
time. A simple hug or pat on the back can also be comforting when speaking with
a child who may be in distress because of their stuttering habits.

Use
meals as a time to converse with your family. Using meals as a time to converse
can encourage your child to talk about their day and share what they have
coming up at school or in their extra-curricular activities. Omit having a tv
or radio in the dining room so that family members can speak with one another
and work on talking.

Allow
your child to speak for themselves. Encourage your child to speak and allow
them to do so for themselves. Help your child build confidence with speaking
and if you interrupt them or finish their sentences for them, this can be
discouraging.

There
are many things that you can do to help your child overcome their stuttering
habit. Sometimes it takes time for your child to outgrow the habit while other
times it may take the time and attention from a specialized speech pathologist.
Whatever is needed, be patient, kind, and loving towards your child as they
work on their speech.